STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Backers of GOP Rep. Michael Grimm staged a rally at the Staten Island Expressway overpass along Fingerboard Road on Wednesday, showing their ongoing support of the congressman as he campaigns against Democrat Domenic M. Recchia.

Grimm (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn), who did not attend the rally and has no affiliation with the group, offered an emailed statement thanking his constituents for their efforts.

"These hardworking people are more than just my constituents; they're my friends and neighbors. They know I'll always have their backs, and it's incredibly heartening to know they have mine too," Grimm said.

Some 20 pro-Grimm folks waved their rally signs for the rush hour traffic funneling from the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge onto the expressway Wednesday evening.

Most who attended the rally brushed off many of the controversial allegations against Grimm, including a federal investigation into his campaign finance practices and an on-the-air blow-up in January where he threatened to throw a NY1 reporter off a balcony.

Grimm also faced a 20-count federal indictment in April on tax evasion, perjury, obstruction and other charges connected to his former Healthalicious health food restaurant. The indictment said that Grimm hired illegal immigrants and paid them off the books.

"He's a good man -- Staten Island needs a man who is for Staten Island," said Joanne Bennetti of South Beach. "I'd lay down my life for Grimm because he was there for Staten Island."

Ms. Bennetti and several others who attended the rally referred to the allegations against Grimm as a political witch hunt.

"I believe that this prosecution by the administration is not really a prosecution, but it's a persecution," said Bruce DeCell of Great Kills.

Others at the rally took an even more impassioned stance in support of their congressman, defending Grimm's threatening of NY1 reporter Michael Scotto.

"Maybe the guy deserved to be thrown off the balcony -- maybe he was a (expletive) communist," said one supporter who attended the rally on Wednesday, accusing Scotto of overstepping his bounds when he asked Grimm about the latest fundraising allegations against the congressman.

"If somebody came for the last four years and twisted a story around for four years straight, you'd probably have a bad day and get a little bit upset as well," said Bobby Zahn, an organizer of the rally.

The group of supporters shared a variety of reasons as to why they back Grimm, citing his military background and recovery efforts following Hurricane Sandy.

"He was really there for the people," Zahn said. "You go down to Midland Beach or New Dorp and they love the guy -- he was the only guy down there with his sleeves rolled up. Everyone else came down, took a picture, smiled, made a promise and left. After all the cameras were gone, he was the guy who was there."